**Source:** Leninist Anthology X, p. 170
**Date:** 1904-01-23

The correspondence printed below (three letters) illuminates the organizational preparation for the forthcoming session of the Soviet, in particular the question of the secretary (secretaries) for keeping the minutes of the sessions. As is evident from the text of the Soviet protocols printed below, they were maintained in parallel by two secretaries. On the part of the Central Committee, the secretary was P. N. Lepeshinskii. But it has not been established who was the secretary on the part of the editorial board of the Central Organ.

In the present correspondence, the author of two letters on behalf of the foreign representative of the Central Committee was Lenin. F. V. Lengnik, on whose behalf these letters were issued in their final version, made only certain corrections and additions of a concrete character, affixed the date and his signature.

# 165.

## V. I. LENIN ON BEHALF OF THE FOREIGN REPRESENTATIVE OF THE CENTRAL COMMITTEE — TO G. V. PLEKHANOV*.

[January 23, 1904** 1 Geneva.]

Most Esteemed Comrade!

We would propose that the Soviet meet for a session on Monday, 25.I., at 4 o'clock in the afternoon at the Landolt restaurant. If you wish to appoint another place and time, please inform us no later than Sunday, since one of us lives far from Geneva.** 2

As regards the secretariat, we would consider it possible to limit ourselves to the services of comrade Martov, who had already been appointed at the 1st session of the Soviet as its secretary.3

Regarding the secretariat of comrade Blumenfeld, we would protest most decisively, because he is, first of all, not conspiratorial (he informed Drutskoi about Lenin's membership in the Central Committee), second, far too expansive, so that calm and businesslike conduct are in no way guaranteed — up to and including the danger of scandal and locking things up. Third, we may need to raise in the Soviet the question precisely concerning him personally, as a purchaser of party literature.4

If you deem the secretariat of a special person necessary, we propose for this comrade Bychkov, who belongs to the old members of the Iskra organization and prominent figures of the Party (member of the Editorial Board), being moreover the most impartial and capable of keeping all records calmly.

Members of the Soviet*2

P.S. I shall have to come specially to Geneva for the Soviet session, and the post from Mornex takes quite a long time. Therefore I would very much ask you either to send me a letter no later than Sunday (during the day) in case the session is appointed for Monday, otherwise I shall not manage to receive the notification.

In the contrary case, I would ask that the session be postponed to Wednesday.5

My address: Mornex...** 2

**1** Lenin's own signature does not appear on the letter; it was added in the hand of F. V. Lengnik.

**2** The letter was initially written by Lenin, on behalf of both members of the Soviet, representatives of the Central Committee. This was apparently done in the absence of F. V. Lengnik, who lived in the vicinity of Geneva. When the latter became acquainted with the draft of the letter, he apparently found it more expedient that all these organizational negotiations concerning the convocation of the Soviet session (time, place, secretariat) be conducted on behalf of the official foreign representative of the Central Committee and, by agreement with Lenin, made corresponding changes to the draft: he corrected the text of the first

\* F. V. Lengnik crossed out "Members of the Soviet" and wrote in "Devoted to You F. Vasiliev." *Ed.*

\*\* The entire "P.S." in the manuscript is crossed out and replaced by F. V. Lengnik with another: "P.S. Please inform us how you decide regarding the secretaries so that we can manage to give warning.

My address: M-r Frédéric..." *Ed.*

paragraph, changed the signature, and replaced Lenin's post-scriptum with one of different content.

**3** This refers to the session of the Soviet on November 29, when the Soviet constituted itself in a new composition after the cooptation of the Martovist majority into the editorial board of the Iskra (see the protocol of this Soviet session — "Leninist Anthology" VII, document 108, pp. 279–284). This Soviet session was "the first" only for the new composition of the Soviet. But generally the first session of the Soviet took place on November 1, the day after the conclusion of the Congress of the League. At that moment the composition of the Soviet was as follows: G. V. Plekhanov — elected by the second congress of the party, V. I. Lenin and L. E. Gal'perin — from the editorial board of the Central Organ, F. V. Lengnik and V. A. Noskov — from the Central Committee (see the resolution of the Soviet of November 1 — "Leninist Anthology" VII, document 71, pp. 179–183). After Lenin's withdrawal from the editorial board and his cooptation to the Central Committee, after the cooptation of the Martovsty into the editorial board and after L. E. Gal'perin's withdrawal from the Soviet, the composition of the Soviet changed as follows: G. V. Plekhanov — elected by the congress, Yu. O. Martov and P. B. Akselrod — from the editorial board of the Central Organ, V. I. Lenin and F. V. Lengnik — from the Central Committee.

**4** The actions of I. S. Blumenfeld as a "purchaser of party literature" have not been specifically clarified. But apparently they consisted in the fact that I. S. Blumenfeld, in addition to the party literature (50 issues of the Iskra, etc.) which came into the disposal of the editorial board with the knowledge of the Central Committee, on the instruction of the Martovist majority of the editorial board, also purchased published party literature. Thus the editorial board concentrated in its hands a special fund of party literature for supplying local committees (apart from the Central Committee) through its appointed representatives (see above, document 162, p. 162, and below "Protocols of Sessions of the Soviet of the R.S.-D.R.P. January 28–30, 1904," 3rd session, pp. 263–264, end of Lenin's speech).

**5** This post-scriptum of Lenin's is in some inconsistency with the preceding main text of his draft letter; the letter was drafted on behalf of two members of the Soviet delegated by the Central Committee (the letter is signed: "Members of the Soviet"), while the post-scriptum is written on behalf of F. V. Lengnik alone. This inconsistency is apparently explained by the presence here in one text of two versions; 1) the main text of the letter without the post-scriptum, ending with the signature "Members of the Soviet" — this is one version (an appeal of a collective character — from both members of the Soviet); 2) the main text of the letter together with the post-scriptum, excluding the signature "Members of the Soviet" — this is another version (an appeal of an individual character — only from F. V. Lengnik). F. V. Lengnik apparently decided in favor of the second version and correspondingly made his concrete corrections to Lenin's draft (see above, note 2).

Leninist Anthology X.